Are chimpanzees really to blame? It wasn’t until Magic Johnson revealed that he had been victimized by HIV in the 90’s, that people took notice. HIV/AIDS could affect anyone: homosexual, heterosexual, famous or infamous (Spector 2).Before Magic’s case HIV/AIDS had been labeled as a “gay disease” and was widely ignored by heterosexuals (Spector 2). Since numerous prominent celebrities before Magic had succumbed to the disease after only a few months, many expected Magic to follow suit, and his name to go down in history as one of those that could have been, but never was(Spector 2).On the contrary, instead of relying on self-pity, anguish and despair, Magic lifted himself, and helped others that were in the same predicament, hence undergoing a radical transformation from being one of the most revered basketball stars in the 90’s to being the most avid of HIV/AIDS advocate for the minority whose inability to afford good health care, put them on harm way, of succumbing (Spector 2).
Although HIV is no longer the automatic death sentence it was in the 80’s, it remains a thorn even in our modern societies. For instance, HIV treatment is exponentially expensive, and can only be afforded by residents in developed countries. In fact, most third world nations are still in the 80’s as far as HIV treatment technology is concerned. Fatality rates particularly in Africa are astronomical to say the least (Rensburg 267). With prices, for
In 1991 magic johnson stuns the world by announcing his retirement from the L.A. Lakers, after testing positive for HIV, the virus that cause AIDS. At the time , many americans viewed AIDS as a gay white man's disease. Magic Johnson who is an african american was one of the first sports stars to to go public about his status. As one of the greatest basketball players of all time, Magic Johnson spent his entire nba career with the LA Lakers, helping them win five championships in the 1980’s. Today Johnson is a spokesman for aids awareness and has transformed aids from a death sentence to a manageable condition for many
HIV/AIDS has been responsible for one of the worst epidemics in history. In her book “The Invisible Cure” Helen Epstein details why Africa in particular was so devastated by the disease, which countries failed and which succeeded in the struggle to contain the virus, and why this happened. Epstein highlights a particular phenomenon, that first took place in Uganda, but which can be translated to many countries and situations, and which she calls “the invisible cure.”
Aids is a disease that is increasing rapidly. Even though there is more efficient technology today
Magic Johnson became a symbol of hope to the people of America who live with the HIV virus after his announcement. In announcing his HIV positive status he raised awareness about the disease. He was able to shed light on the stereotypes associated with the disease, and he was also able to emphasize the importance of safe sex. He showed everyone that we are all at risk and need to be careful. He showed that it indeed can happen to anyone-rich or poor. He stressed the importance of treatment and living a healthy life with the disease. He funded and still funds HIV education programs and programs that work toward prevention of the disease. Magic Johnson’s announcement caused many
HIV is a universal and a pandemic disease has claimed 33 million lives globally in the 1980s. It is approximated that 35 million
Introduction –HIV, Human immune deficiency virus which started in late mid 90s has already devastated many people causing great economic impact on their families, communities and health care systems. In USA the first HIV patient was diagnosed in 1981 after which disease spreads rapidly by which it affects nearly 1.2 million people as of now. As per US centre for disease control and prevention Out of 1.2 million
“Everyday the HIV/AIDS pandemic continues to kill three times as many people than died during the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001” (Elbe 2006, p.119). The Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) weakens the immune system by destroying the cells that fight disease and infection. In the final stages of the HIV infection, it can lead to the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Not all people who are diagnosed with HIV progress to acquiring AIDS, although once you have been diagnosed with the HIV infection, you have it for life. HIV/AIDS have claimed the lives of more than 39 million people globally since the discovery (World Health Organisation 2014) with a majority of these cases being in sub-Saharan Africa.
Since the outbreak of HIV/AIDS, an estimated 78 million people have acquired HIV and has killed approximately 39 million people infected with the virus. The prognosis of the epidemic has continued to vary from different countries and according to global statistics; 35 million people in 2013 were living with HIV/AIDS. 2.5 million People per annum acquire the virus and 1.5 million die of AIDS. Inspite of the drastic transmission of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, the development and accessibility of anti-retroviral drugs has decreased mortality rates by 22% from a population of 2.0million in 2009 to 1.5million in 2013 (WHO, 2013),
In line with the United Nations program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) report, the first cases of uncommon immune deficits were recognised among gay men in United States of America in 1981 which commonly denoted as the start of the recent HIV epidemic (UNAIDS 2015:80). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
When it comes to HIV/AIDS, it is still today regarded as the most critical epidemic that affects a significant number of people in the world’s population. HIV statistics for the end of 2013 indicate that around 35 million people are currently living with HIV worldwide, 38 percent less than in 2001. In the same year, around 2.1 million people became infected with HIV and 1.5 million died of AIDS-related illnesses. HIV and AIDS are found in all parts of the world, however some areas are more affected than others (“Global HIV & AIDS Epidemic,” 2014).
Many people do not understand what Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is and the difference been HIV and Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS). As with other sexually transmitted diseases, HIV is often stigmatized due to the method of transmission. HIV is a virus that destroys CD4 T cells, which are immune cells in the body (Forsman & Weiss, 2008). When the immune cells in the body fall to very low levels, this is when HIV progresses into AIDS. Since the immune system is weak a person can die from AIDS because of the inability to fight off infections, such as tuberculosis or pneumonia (Forsman & Weiss, 2008). Approximately 1.7 million people in the United States have been infected with HIV, and more than 600,000 have died (AIDS.gov U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 2012). These numbers are very high, since the epidemic was only identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the 1980s (Krause, May, & Butler Jr, 2013). The number of those infected with the disease are not accurate because researchers believe many people infected with HIV have not been diagnosed yet (Shahani, Hartman, Troisi, Kapadia, & Giordano, 2012; Hallmark et al., 2014). Since it’s discovery there have been great improvements in the treatment of HIV and AIDS patients, although there is still no cure. There is an increased need for the diagnosis and treatment of the disease for men and women in the U.S.
Almost 36.9 million people are currently living with HIV infection and almost 10 million people being died from the infection or as a result related causes or opportunistic infections. At present people acquired the infection reported from all regions in the world. The majority of old and new cases are reported from sub-Saharan Africa which accounts for almost 70%. Most of the HIV infection affects people at their predictive life, and around 40% of the infection occurs in young youth at age less than 25 ys. (Global Health policy, 2014).
During the 1980’s, a very devastating infectious disease broke out in America, which is now known as the Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). Aids have been one of the most damaging and destructive diseases in history. The only reason behind the spread of the deadly disease- AIDS is lack of knowledge which has resulted in growing number everyday. “UNAIDS estimates that as of December 2000, there were an estimated 36.1 million people living with HIV/AIDS (34.7 million adults and 1.4 million children under 15)” ("AIDS Information, Education, Action, Awareness | How Many People Have HIV and AIDS?" AIDS Information, Education, Action, Awareness | How Many People Have HIV and AIDS? Web. 1 Nov. 2015). Aids has become a worldwide
The spread of HIV in Africa can easily be stopped by means of education; furthermore HIV can be treated with modern
Early epidemiological studies in the 1980’s aimed to identify the mode of transmission of HIV (De Cock et al., 2012). Findings from these studies have described the spread of HIV/AIDS to mainly occur through sexual transmission, mother-to-child transmission, and parenteral (blood-borne) transmission and these findings have driven subsequent research and prevention efforts in order to reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS (De Cock et al., 2012) (Handsfield, 2011). HIV/AIDS is a great cost to nations both directly and indirectly,